Android doesn’t have Apple’s explicit restrictions, but it does have other barriers to frictionless donation.

PRX has explored solutions for as long as we’ve been building mobile apps. See a few in action in our station apps.

But there’s much room for innovation. Join PRX’s Technical Projects Director Matt MacDonald and other user experience experts from public media and beyond for a working session, “Pledge Your Support for Mobile”. It will be at the Integrated Media Association (IMA) conference on March 8, just before SXSW. This session is for UX, tech, membership, development, and anyone else who wants to channel our audiences’ mobile engagement into support for public media.

So we launched WBUR on the iPhone, and we reused much of that code to develop high-quality, affordable apps for several more stations. We call this master codebase the “PRX station app product“, with built-in features and things stations can customize.

Like so much in digital technology, things change pretty fast. By mid-2011, Android device adoption was actually ahead of iOS, the Android Market was starting to improve significantly, and the platform was more stable across more devices (though it still has a ways to go, especially for audio/video playback).

In other words, it was time.

Today, we’re proud to announce the first station app for Android: WQXR Classical from New York Public Radio. Like the iPhone apps, WQXR for Android is based off of a PRX station app product developed specifically for Android.

Thanks to the efficiency of this master codebase, and the growing demand for Android apps, you’ll be seeing more public media stations coming to Android soon.

But what if you’re just some guy or gal with an idea? How do you go about making and promoting an app? How do you not only avoid going broke, but possibly even make some money?

This story from NPR’s On the Media doesn’t have all the answers. But Rekha Murthy, who helps manage PRX’s mobile apps business, gave the producer Jody Avirgan a few things to consider. Her description of PRX’s app process provided a tinge of reality to Jody’s hopes for an app to make him rich quick.

It is commonly accepted that to make an app, you first need a good idea. Listen to the story to learn what Jody’s idea is, and how you can help.

Here are a few quotes, and you can find the full post here.

As public broadcasting goes through its own turbulent transition to a new Internet and mobile world, the technology talent gap is a risk that looms large. Yes, there are many other challenges: political and policy battles, business model pressures, cultural and structural obstacles, the need for strategic vision and leadership. And there are other recruitment needs across general management, content, fundraising. But the twin coins of the new digital realm are code and design, and with a few notable exceptions, public media is seriously lacking in both.

These days the competition for talent in media technology is fierce, from new ventures to mature enterprises. Public media should be the go-to place for aspiring and experienced technologists who believe in a public service mission, want to collaborate to build products, services and content for millions of people, and seek an alternative from the rapidly commercializing web. There should be natural alliances with open-source software communities, with leading nonprofit web giants Mozilla and Wikipedia, the growing number of web-based local news organizations, and the open/civic data movement.

To keep up with the latest from the PRX tech team make sure to check out the PRX Labs blog.

Listen and view the station’s radio and TV programs and programming schedules. Read up on the latest local, national, and world news. Enjoy KPBS’s extensive arts coverage including their blogs, Culture Lust and Cinema Junkie.

For those interested in local programming, check the on-air schedules in the app and tune in live to Midday Edition, Evening Edition, and Envision San Diego, or get past episodes in On Demand. If you’re looking for something to do in San Diego, take advantage of KPBS’s events picks.

And, while you’ve got local on the mind, KPBS wants to hear from you – submit text, photos, and audio in response to assignments and help shape their coverage. This feature is a version of PRX’s Assignments product, which you can also see in the WBUR, WGBH, and VPR apps.

What’s next? We’ve got a KPBS app for Android in the works, and as with all our apps, we’ll continue to partner with KPBS on ongoing improvements.

KQED serves Northern California, including the Bay Area. This app is going to keep you busy.

• Listen and watch live and on-demand content from well-known national programs and local shows including Forum, QUEST, The California Report, Check, Please!, Spark, and many more.
• You can also catch up on KQED’s popular blogs: News Fix, Bay Area Bites, Capital Notes, and more.
• When you’re ready to interact with the real world, the app has local events listings, with links to maps, websites, and sometimes even ticket purchasing.

If you’re a KQED member, you can enjoy KQED Perks — discounts offered by local businesses — more easily than ever. Scan through a list of discounts, find them on a map, and redeem by launching a virtual member card in the app itself. Just show your device to the business and the discount is yours – no paper card needed! This feature is a result of our integration of member benefits and member validation into the PRX station app platform.

As with all of our station apps, this app makes it easy to support the station. And don’t you think, with all this content and technology goodness, they deserve it?

Get the WNYC app now.

WNYC is one of the top public radio stations in the country, with an exciting mix of news, culture, and music. The app was designed to present this abundance of content in a way that’s appealing and easy to navigate. You can listen to programming, read blogs and news feeds, find local events, pledge your support, and more.

The app is powered by the PRX station app platform, which streamlines the development and updating process while letting WNYC’s unique identity take center stage.

Learn more about WNYC and the app in this press release.

Vermont Public Radio is now on the iPhone. The VPR app is based on the PRX station app codebase, and the result is very much a Vermont app. That’s because VPR is deeply rooted in its communities, with regular news, features, and services. Their coverage of Hurricane Irene’s impact on the state kept a lot of people informed when information was hard to come by, earning them strong praise (and we’re sure much gratitude).

The VPR app is an expression of the network’s desire to inform and include its listeners. The Tell Us feature is based on PRX’s Assignments product, which lets VPR staff invite people to submit audio, photos, and text in response to specific assignments and topics. The app also offers classical music programming and commentaries from Vermonters.

Get the app now. Whether or not you have direct connections to Vermont and VPR, it’s great to see another quality app for public media out in the hands of the listeners we serve.

Assignments for good times…

…and not-so-good times.

• Listen live to WQXR and their contemporary Q2 station
• View real-time playlists and schedules
• Access music shows, podcasts, and videos
• Read features and blogs from WQXR’s classical universe
• Request music and pledge to support WQXR

Inside the app you’ll find a wealth of detail about what you heard and will hear on WQXR. Between feature stories and relevant events, you’ll be up on the latest news from the classical music world. You can set an alarm clock/sleep timer and wake up (or fall asleep) to your favorite music.

WQXR’s knowledgeable and passionate hosts make the airwaves classy from the top of the Empire State Building. PRX’s freshest app delivers their selections beautifully to your mobile device. It’s part of our ongoing efforts to get great public media into more hands.

An Android version of the app is on the way.

With the launch flurry settling down, we’ve had some time to reflect on how the app came about. It was quite a process. Head over to the PRX Labs blog for an interview with Matt MacDonald, PRX’s Director of Project Management, on the concept and design, where he says things like:

One goal for us was to encourage musical exploration and delight so some of our interaction decisions basically force you to try out music that you might not be familiar with. We made sure to encourage that by not adding features like search or sorting and filtering tools.

Read Exploring The Depths Of Music Mine on PRX Labs.